Sailing North on the East Coast Australia

[SV Obscure]

Hi All,

Brand new to this forum and brand new sailor. I am a retired gent who is currently in the process of rebuilding a Cal 2-46 in the Gold Coast. The boat is some 6-8 weeks away from being ready to splash and shake down.

My questions is when is it too late to head north from here to Thailand due to weather and sailing conditions.

Thank you in advance

Obscure (Leo)

[Wotname]

Welcome aboard Leo.

From the info you have posted, the short answer is 'Yes' it is too late to sail north this season.

Depending on whether you plan to leisurely cruise to Thailand or make a fast transit, the earliest departure would be during the southern autumn or winter.

[Montanan]

https://www.bing.com/search?pglt=41&...ANCMS9&PC=HCTS

"Thailand is typically prone to typhoons from June through December, although they are more common from September to November. Indian Ocean cyclones can occur year-round due to the warm sea but are most common between April and December. In general, Thailand is less affected by storms than its Southeast Asian neighbors."



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023%E...cyclone_season

The 2023–24 Australian region cyclone season is an upcoming weather event in the southern hemisphere. The season will officially start on 1 November 2023 and end on 30 April 2024,

[SV Obscure]

Thanks WOT

Appreciate your feedback, yes the trip will be leisurely as we want to go Via Raja Ampat West Papua.

Looks like March 2024 it is.

Thanks again.

[Wotname]

Hi Leo, I know you haven’t asked for additional input but I offer it anyway - please feel free to disregard any or all of it.

So you are a brand new sailor and have almost finished a major refit on a 50 year old boat which presumably has been refitted a few times since it was first launched. Presumably you have done some of the refit yourself and have paid others for some of the work.

As you have stated, you are planning to do some shakedown sailing before heading to Thailand which is by any assessment a decent voyage for a brand new (retired) sailor.

I first learnt sailing in Moreton Bay and then on the Qld coast after doing a significant refit so here are some suggestions to consider.

There will be remedial work required after the refit; a refit is never 100% perfect, never ever. The Gold Coast / Brisbane / Moreton Bay offers endless opportunities to get to know the boat and get the refit hiccups sorted. Once you are happy with the boat and with some basic sailing under your belt, venture north to Tin Can Bay via Mooloolaba and spent a few weeks in the Great Sandy Straits (say January). Perhaps do a training sail from the Wide Bay Bar outside to the Breaksea Spit and back to (say) Bundaberg; you can pick a suitable weather window.

Get all the training and refit issues done during the southern summer in waters close to you and be ready to depart further afield from say Hervey Bay / Bundaberg / Gladstone once the cyclone season closes.

[Wotname]

FWIW - the OP's boat has a 37.5' LWL (with a hull speed of 8.2kn) and a 5' draft. It is currently on the hard on Gold Coast, Qld.

https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/cal-2-46/

[GILow]

Originally Posted by Wotname

FWIW - the OP's boat has a 37.5' LWL (with a hull speed of 8.2kn) and a 5' draft. It is currently on the hard on Gold Coast, Qld.



https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/cal-2-46/

I think Ann meant for that response to go to a different thread. A Roberts 57 heading out of Perth. I copied her post over to that thread.

[JPA Cate]

Thanks, Matt. You're right.

Ann

[Wotname]

Originally Posted by GILow

I think Ann meant for that response to go to a different thread. A Roberts 57 heading out of Perth. I copied her post over to that thread.

Ahh... you mean this one https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...ml#post3817158

Good spotting GILow

[JPA Cate]

Originally Posted by SV Obscure

Hi All,

Brand new to this forum and brand new sailor. I am a retired gent who is currently in the process of rebuilding a Cal 2-46 in the Gold Coast. The boat is some 6-8 weeks away from being ready to splash and shake down.

My questions is when is it too late to head north from here to Thailand due to weather and sailing conditions.

Thank you in advance

Obscure (Leo)

Hi, Leo,

Nice boat, actually. Shake it down in Moreton Bay like Wotname suggested: it is an easy trip back to Boat Works for more work, or also, work is easy to accomplish from the Moreton Bay Trailer Boat Club in Manly, Qld. Good bus and train access all over. A chandlery across the main road. Eateries close and also farther, in Wynnum, but still walkable.

Further north, we found Gladstone to be pretty convenient for doing all kinds of unexpected boat jobs. It's an industrial town with lots of interesting mechanical shops, and a lot of practical knowledge. Not as convenient as MBTBC, but pretty darned good. The further you get from capitol cities, the slower shipping works.

Although cyclone season is nominally Nov-Apr, in fact, we have had early ones (Oct ) and late ones (May 15th), so it will be necessary to cultivate extreme weather awareness, as the waters are very warm now, and the old nominal limits may be shifting.

Ann